


Exile

by debbiedoanything



Category: Ozark (TV)
Genre: Enemies to Lovers, F/M, Fake Character Death, this is just me exploring wendy's criminal potential since season 1
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-03
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-16 07:29:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,598
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29821512
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/debbiedoanything/pseuds/debbiedoanything
Summary: Marty thinks Wendy is dead, but she actually just became his newest enemy.
Relationships: Marty Byrde/Wendy Byrde
Kudos: 3





	Exile

“Or I take care of our Wendy problem… right here, right now.”

Wendy's eyes widened at the words. She was completely fucked. Right next to her, Del was making an offer to her husband. The same husband she had been unfaithful to since their marriage wasn't on the best terms. And that offer involved nothing less than her life.

Only for a second, she thought that he was going to accept it. That he was so angry at her, he would want her dead. But 'angry' wasn't like Marty. He was always calm like the ocean on a sunny day, and at the same time cold and calculating like a storm waiting for the right moment to fall.

She couldn't say that her affair was worth it. Wendy did not love Gary. Sure, he was there to do things she never did in 20 years of marriage while Marty hadn't touched her since God knows when. He was always working, always too busy for her. Shutting her out when she needed him the most.

Wendy regretted what she did? In parts. It was wrong of her to cheat on her husband. She knew that his vows meant something to him. Nevertheless, what they had could still be considered a marriage? Barely. But she never stopped loving Marty. They were just lost from themselves. Disconnected.

Her life had changed more in five hours than in five years. She wasn't thinking straight. She couldn't focus on anything besides the gun pointed at her and the man pondering if he should kill her or not. Her body was responding to the imminent danger, making her hands sweat and forming a lump on her throat.

Wendy didn't want to cry. For some reason, she wasn't feeling the need to do it. Maybe the men surrounding her triggered her brain's defense mechanism, and she wanted to appear strong, although she was the person with less dignity in the room.

She felt pathetic.

On the other side of the line, Marty's voice felt reassuring as it crossed her eardrums. A member of a Mexican drug cartel was offering to kill his wife, and that was a drastic action beyond unfaithfulness. But Marty remained with his usual voice tone. He couldn't afford any emotions at the moment, anyway.

“Look, there's no need for that.” He said in such a way that even himself didn't believe in the words coming out of his mouth.

“Why? She _betrayed _you. She was going to take all your money and run away with her lover. Why are you still defending her?” In Del's head, it was a simple situation. If his wife did that to him, he would kill her without thinking twice.__

__“Because she is the mother of my children and regardless of any betrayals, I still have some respect for her. It's not like I can throw 22 years of marriage out of a window right away. I'm not a monster.” Marty spat out as if he was explaining the most obvious thing in the world._ _

__“I'm not saying you are the monster, Marty. I'm saying that she is.” There was so much disgust in Del's voice that it made Wendy flinch. “She can become a problem real quick. But I won't let this happen.”_ _

__“What do you mean?” Sensing that things were about to get ugly, Marty got out of the car and started to run to the building._ _

__“You can't always get what you want, Marty.” Del said, raising his eyebrows. He pointed to Wendy, and his men already knew what to do. “But, sometimes, _you get what you need _.”___ _

____One of Del's men held Wendy still, while another one took a gun out of his jacket. The guy holding her also covered her mouth with his hand to prevent her from screaming. The blonde closed her eyes, silently saying goodbye to life and embracing her death. The blonde swore she could see a light._ _ _ _

____Three gunshots burst on Del's side of the line. The distant echoes could also be heard from where Marty was, and for a moment, his brain made him think that Gary's lifeless body had moved a bit after the second shot._ _ _ _

____Marty stopped moving. He was pretty sure that his heart stopped beating, too. Slowly, he collapsed to the ground._ _ _ _

____“You can thank me later.” And with that, Del hung up, leaving to Marty the presence of the silence._ _ _ _

____The whole timeline of his relationship with Wendy started playing in his head. The day they first met their first kiss, the day he proposed to her, their wedding, their first trip as a married couple, the day Charlotte was born, their holidays as a family, the day Jonah was born. Happy moments._ _ _ _

____Then, the day she told him she was pregnant again._ _ _ _

____The accident. The heavy days that came after it. She was acting differently. Broken, depressed. He started to work too much. He had a big opportunity, after all. They got colder with each other over the years, almost as if their relationship became mechanical. There was no love anymore. No sex. No talk. He chose his job over his wife. And finally, she chose an affair over her marriage. Bitter memories._ _ _ _

____Marty realized he had spent so much time at her side that he couldn't even remember what life without Wendy was like._ _ _ _

____He got up and walked to his car, unsure of where to go. His hands were shaky, his palms were sweaty and his grip on the steering wheel was so strong that his knuckles turned white. When the vehicle roared to life, he looked at the sky. Jonah and Charlotte were waiting for them to come back since… what time was it? The sun was already setting, which meant hours had passed. His children must be worried by now._ _ _ _

____What the hell was he going to tell his children? The truth; that their mother was shot and killed by a Mexican criminal after she tried to run away with her lover? Or the lie; that 'mom went to a better place'? Well, Wendy wasn't going anywhere near heaven._ _ _ _

____He drove home preparing himself for a very difficult conversation._ _ _ _

____ _ _

____\---_ _ _ _

____ _ _

____“You can thank me later.” She heard Del saying._ _ _ _

____Her eyes were closed, tears streaming down her face. Wendy was surprised when she realized she was still alive. No bullet wounds or any pain at all. One of Del's henchmen shot three times out of the window, making sure that Marty heard it from where he was._ _ _ _

____The one who was holding her quickly made her get up from the chair she was sitting and moved away after their little theater was over._ _ _ _

____When her eyes opened, she found Del staring at her._ _ _ _

____“What the fuck did just happen?” She asked confusedly, unsure if she wanted to know the answer._ _ _ _

____“We needed something to keep Marty on a short leash. And then I realized that you are exactly what we were looking for.” Del smiled at her. Not a truthful smile, or even a sarcastic one. His expression had pure evil printed through it._ _ _ _

____“So what are you going to do with me now? Marty thinks I'm dead.” Wendy felt sick as if she was going to vomit. The bile was already rising at her throat as she thought about her destiny._ _ _ _

____“You will come with me and wait for the right moment if you want to see your husband again. But I doubt that a bitch with no moral values like you, who had the guts to cheat on her own husband would want to have anything to do with him.” He said with disdain._ _ _ _

____The next thing Del felt was her hand colliding with his cheek. No warning, open palm. _Bitch slap _. A totally insane act, although she didn't know from where she had taken the courage to do so. She retreated her hand, not feeling the usual tingling that comes after a good slap. The adrenaline was so much that she wasn't feeling anything.___ _ _ _

______“You don't know what you're saying.” She managed to spit out a whole phrase without stuttering, which boosted her already high levels of adrenaline. Wendy could be many things, including a cheater. Nonetheless, she wouldn't allow anyone to freely insult her, especially if she was going to be killed right after it._ _ _ _ _ _

______Del brought his hand to his cheek, surprised. After slapping him, Wendy was conscious that her life was now hung by a thread. She heard the men moving towards her, and she was a hundred percent sure that they were going to beat the shit out of her._ _ _ _ _ _

______But instead, Del gestured for them to back off._ _ _ _ _ _

______“You, Wendy Byrde, are a bold woman. You're aware that I could kill you now, right?” Del asked, massaging his cheek. Even though Wendy seemed fragile and helpless, she knew how to slap someone when she needed to._ _ _ _ _ _

______“But you won't do it. You just said that you needed me.” She offered, slowly acknowledging that the situation she got herself into had only one way out. “I can be more useful for you than Marty.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Now you're being idiotic. You know nothing about money laundering.” Del laughed as if she had just told him the funniest joke he ever heard._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I used to work with politics. Trust me, if I haven't picked my family over my job, I could be running my own money-laundering scheme right now.” She let out a dry laugh. “You can use me only as a way to terrorize Marty if you want to. But, if you're clever enough, I can become your most dangerous weapon.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“You are just making promises you won't stick to, Wendy. And no matter what you say to me, I still won't trust you.” Del raised his eyebrow, studying her expression._ _ _ _ _ _

______“You can test me first. Give me your dirty money, send me to the Ozarks. Let the best man win. I just can't guarantee that he will be the best man.” Wendy started to bargain. “One chance is all I need. I will be declared dead in a few hours, so I can leave Chicago right away. I used to be paid to convince people to do things, so I am more qualified for this job than Marty could ever be.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“And what do you win with all of this?” Del asked, interested. “If I give you the money, what will stop you from running away with it just like you were ready to run away with Marty's money?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“My children.” She sighed. “If I do a better job than Marty, you will let him think that you killed Jonah and Charlotte too, but they come to live with me instead. If I fail, you can kill me for real.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Are you sure of your decision, Wendy?” Del asked. “Once we close a deal, you can not go back.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______"So we _do _have a deal?" She smiled to him.___ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________\---_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“How are we gonna… bury her if there _isn't _a body?” Charlotte asked between sobs.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Jonah had been hugging Marty since he told them Wendy was dead. Charlotte cried a lot, but not even a single tear left Jonah's eyes. Actually, he hasn't said anything. Just had been staring blankly at the wall in shock the whole time._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"We can just buy a tombstone with her name, Charlotte." Marty said, his voice almost cracking. But he had to be strong for his children._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Our last conversation was a fight.” She cried. “We were fighting because I didn't want to move to the Ozarks. The last thing I said to her was how much I hated her for making us move away. And now she's dead.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"It's not your fault, honey." He kissed her forehead while she hugged him. "We will leave tomorrow after lunch."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"Why do we still have to move?" Jonah spoke for the first time since Marty got home. He was looking into his eyes, pleading for an answer._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"It's a great opportunity, Jonah." Marty answered him, a flashback of the night Del killed Bruce going through his mind._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"It doesn't make sense without mom." He stormed off to his bedroom, leaving Marty and Charlotte alone in the living room._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________He looked at his daughter, usually so distant while dealing with her own teenage angst and now so fragile after her mom was killed._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"Charlotte, I'm gonna need your help with some stuff." He said, and she stopped staring at the floor to look at him. "You will take care of the house when I'm out. Put your brother to help you. Things will be hard from now on, but we will deal with this-"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"What happened to her body, dad?" She interrupted him, eyes filling up with tears again._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"I don't know." Marty answered, almost inaudible. "I'm sorry, Charlotte. There wasn't anything I could do."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"I just can't believe that she's... _dead _." The words felt weird as they came out of Charlotte's tongue. As if they didn't sit right with her. As if they weren't true.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________"Go to sleep, honey. We will deal with this tomorrow." He helped her rose from the couch and go to her bedroom._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Before going to bed, Marty cracked Jonah's bedroom door open to check if Jonah was okay. He was laying down, looking at the ceiling, absorbed in his own thoughts. His nose was red and his eyes were puffy, indicating that he had cried. Noticing that it wasn't a good time to talk with him, Marty just closed the door as silently as he opened it._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________He went to his bedroom, took a shower, and put his pajamas on. Little things he did every day, but that now were feeling weird without Wendy. He wasn't used to being lonely anymore. He wasn't used to missing Wendy. He wasn't used to be a widower._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_____________Widower. ____ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________The word appeared odd for Marty. He was too young to be a widower. To be honest, he always believed he was going to die first, even though she was two years older than him._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________He got up and walked to her closet, opening the door. Marty stood up there for what felt like an eternity. Finally, he decided to pick up a random sweater. It was navy blue, made of wool. Marty stared at it, trying to remember an occasion where she had used it, but his traitorous mind couldn't execute this simple task. Maybe it was because he was exhausted, or because he hadn't really paid attention to what she wore in the last ten years._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Carrying the blue sweater with him, Marty went back to his bed. He struggled to find a position where he felt comfortable since now he didn't have the delimited space. The king-sized bed now was exclusively his. No more Wendy. Ever. And he knew he should feel at least alleviated that she was dead. She wasn't a bad housewife, since the meals were always tasty, the house was always clean and the kids were never late to school. But she was sure as hell ready to run away with her lover using his money and, consequently, letting him get killed._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Despite all of that, the fact that she was dead didn't please him in any way._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________He accidentally rolled to the left and was surprised when he felt the pillow still smelled like her. Actually, everything still smelled like her. Her sweater, her pillows, the bathroom, the closet. After ten years, Marty recognized that her smell was really good._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________That night, he fell asleep on Wendy's side of the bed._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


End file.
